Travel agents from numerous agencies around the Southeast descended on The Déise for the last in the Travel Suppliers Network Roadshows yesterday at the beautiful newly renovated (and now 4*) Marina Hotel, Waterford. Agents arrived from 6pm and were treated to some delicious food and drinks before Craig Donnelly of Accident & General kicked off proceedings.
The Travel Suppliers Network is made up of 12 suppliers including Royal Caribbean, Etihad Airways, Stuba, Sunway, Nebo Tours, JMG Cruises, Accident & General, Island Marketing, Stena Line, Ponant, Paul Gauguin Cruises & Driveaway, who each gave comprehensive product updates and company overviews. Read the updates from each supplier below.
As is always the way at the TSN Roadshows, the supplier presentations were broken up with some energetic (not to mention competitive!) games such as a Scavenger Hunt and The Price Is Right, with some amazing prizes for the worthy winners!
The evening concluded with a short speech from Harvey Travels’ GM, Ian Manto, who thanked the suppliers for bringing their roadshow to Waterford and updating agents in the southwest on all the latest updates, incentives and competitions, which was followed by the obligatory group picture, some more networking and catching up and a few well-earned drinks. Thanks to the TSN suppliers for an amazing night – as always!
Stuba
Angela Muir (Head of Sales UK & IRL) was first up from the suppliers, accompanied by Don Clarke (DCM Sales Representation), as she demonstrated the benefits of booking with trade-only bedbank Stuba. Stuba uses curated listings which means their clever technology will offer hotels based on previous searches and lifestyle choices. Stuba offers a 24/7 service by phone, email or online support and will guarantee a hotel confirmation number for every booking made. The USA and Canada accounts for almost a quarter of the accommodation in their range, followed by the Caribbean/ Mexico and Europe.
The new technology now allows Stuba to show agents how much cheaper their rates are compared to those found on online booking engines, ensuring you are offering your customers the best price available.
VIP Perks have also been introduced meaning your customers will receive an extraordinary hotel experience with Luxury welcome drinks on arrival (wine or champagne), Spa and dining delights in the form of credits, Local treasures (unique treasures handcrafted by artisans), Room upgrades and Flexible check-in/check-out arrangements. These VIP Perks are conveniently highlighted in the Stuba booking system, within their room type and rate plans, making them easy to spot!
JMG Cruises
Next up was Stephen Sands, who kindly stepped in for Tom Maher on this leg of the roadshow, to talk about JMG Cruises and all they have to offer. JMG Cruises have been specialising in ‘No-Fly’ Cruising from Ireland since 2011, with sailings from Belfast to the likes of Belgium and the Netherlands, Western Europe, Ireland and Normandy and Scotland and the Shetland Islands to name a few. JMG Cruises, in conjunction with Ambassador Cruises, offer smaller to mid-sized ships for a more intimate cruising experience. The size of the ships allows access to more interesting places and means they can dock in the heart of some of the world’s most beautiful cities. These sailings promise exceptional dining, amazing entertainment, great value for money, regional coach transfers to and from the ship, as well as a more sustainable and ethical cruise experience. JMG’s 2025 Sailings will launch on 21 March 2024 so stay tuned for more!
Contact their Donegal call centre on 074- 9135201
Etihad Airways
Jason Kearns took to the floor next to give some updates on the ever-popular Etihad Airways, who recently announced they will be increasing the frequency of their Dublin to Abu Dhabi route to 10 flights per week, starting from July 2024.
Little VIP is a new experience for families flying with Etihad in partnership with Warner Bros. World™ Abu Dhabi which includes enhanced menus with food and snacks that children will love, a dedicated family check-in space at Zayed International Airport (Abu Dhabi) and new children’s amenities featuring Scooby Doo and Looney Tunes characters which have been designed in three age ranges – Infants (up to 2 years), Young Flyers (3 to 8 years) and Tweens and Teens (9 to 13).
Jason also spoke about The Constellation Collection, which is in partnership with Armani/Casa,and offers an elevated Business experience. The collection includes a new dining service featuring ceramics, glassware, cutlery and serving ware, as well as premium textiles for a luxurious inflight experience.
Jason also encouraged agents to join SuperSeller where you can earn Etihad Guest Miles every time you make a booking. These Guest Miles can be spent on flights, upgrades, gifts, vouchers or redeemed as cash via their Reward Shop. Simply register online and get a unique APIN, enter your APIN number in the GDS with every booking and you’ll get the Etihad Guest Miles credited for every eligible booking. Visit the SuperSeller section on the Etihadhub to register and for more details!
DriveAway
Auto Europe, who began trading in 1945, took ownership of DriveAway Australia in 2001 and in 2017 DriveAway launched to the UK Trade. More recently, DriveAway has come into the Irish market, with Don Clarke (DCM Sales Representation) driving sales and support in the Irish and Northern Irish industry.
DriveAway offer exclusive trade only deals, using only premium suppliers, as well as 15% commission, no cancellation fee or amendment fee up to 48 hours before pick-up. They have over 24,000 pick-up locations worldwide and have the option of booking one-way rentals. All of their rates include zero excess or full protection where the client pays the excess locally and submits a refund request on their return.
DriveAway also offer Motorhome rentals in over 40 countries (including Ireland) with an extensive range of vehicles to choose from, great rates, a dedicated motorhome team, 15% commission with competitive prices. They offer cars and motorhomes through some of the most reputable car rentals companies worldwide including Hertz, Avis, Alamo, Dollar, Sixt and Europcar to name a few.
Accident & General
After a short break and a fun-filled Scavenger Hunt, where agents had to find everything from a Royal Caribbean Paddle, an Accident & General Poster (is a pull-up banner really just a large poster? Ask Strand Travels’ Darren Hutchinson!) to a Ponant Key Ring, Craig Donnelly took to the floor. Craig reiterated the importance of including travel insurance with every booking to ensure customer (and agent’s) peace of mind and reminded attendees that the cheapest policy isn’t always the best policy.
After listening to agent feedback, Accident & General have improved their processing speed and stability, while remaining fully compliant, with improved functionality and improved technology which now includes API integration and optional extras on pricing screen to make purchasing the right policy for your customer, easier than ever!
Stena Line
Next up was Belfast-based Mark McGeehan from Stena Line who spoke about the various offers available this Summer including their Kids Go Free to Britain and France campaign (offer code: KIDS) for all children aged 4 – 15 years. This offer is available to those booking a motorist economy or flexi fare on numerous sailings including Rosslare to Fishguard and Cherbourg, Dublin to Holyhead and Belfast to Liverpool to name a few. The offer is available on booking made by 7 June 2024 and is for travel anytime from 1 June 2024 to 5 January 2025.
Stene Line will be sailing from Rosslare to Cherbourg six times per week this Summer and can be booked with a small deposit of €100 per booking for ferry only bookings.
Stena Line are also offering camping holidays in France with Pierre & Vacances which includes the Village Club Normandy Garden, which is a short 2 hour drive from Cherbourg and the Village Club Belle Dune slighter further away at 4 hours. They have also introduced Holiday Parks in North Wales brochure which includes Lyons properties in Rhyl, Prestatyn and Tal-y-Bont to name a few.
Don’t forget, your customers can enjoy Duty & Tax-Free Shopping on Holyhead, Fishguard & Harwich routes.
Royal Caribbean
Michelle Ryan was next up to speak on all things Royal Caribbean, including a hilarious demonstration of an agent and customer interaction featuring A&G’s Craig Donnelly, and how best to utilise ‘My Royal Genie’ for your enquiries. Michelle gave a step-by-step demonstration on how to use the seamless ‘My Royal Genie’ which allows agents to find the perfect sailing to match their customer’s needs and requirements. By simply adding the sailing to the customers ‘Holiday Suitcase’, My Royal Genie allows agents to copy a link and send to their customers so they can review their personalised sailing and the magic that awaits them on their next Royal Caribbean cruise.
The Royal Caribbean app allows guests to check-in on their mobile, shows the safety briefing, offers a daily planner and dining reservations, a map of Perfect Day at Cococay as well as guest-to-guest chat at no additional charge!
Ponant
After another short break from the presentations, with a quick-fire round of The Price Is Right, Danny Giles updated attendees on the new product offerings from luxury cruising and expedition experts, Ponant and Paul Gauguin Cruises. With 36 years of experience, 13 luxurious vessels, sailing in over 100 countries across 7 continents, Ponant offer customers the French art of living and refined gastronomy. Danny mentioned that both Ponant and Paul Gauguin Cruises essentially ‘follow the sun’, with sailings across the globe during the perfect sailing conditions.
Danny also reminded agents in attendance that they have a comprehensive photo library and YouTube channel which houses some wonderful short reels, created for mobile viewing, meaning you can easily share these stunning short 30-45 second videos to your agency’s social media accounts to whet your customers appetites.
They also have a wonderful trade Facebook group loaded with offers, updates and incentives so make sure you join it to stay up to date!
Island Marketing
Last but certainly not least, was Brian McCarthy of Island Marketing, who spoke passionately about the Maldives and gave a great overview of the archipelago which comprises of over 1,100 islands spread out over 1,000km (the distance from Ireland to Spain)!
Last year, over 5,500 holidaymakers from Ireland visited the Maldives with an average spend of €7,000 per couple. Being on the Equator means the Maldives enjoys stable temperatures year round, averaging 32C during the day and 26C at night. Brian reminded agents that Sea-Plane transfers (and most speedboats) only operate during daylight hours so book their long-haul flights accordingly.
Kuramathi is the top selling resort from Ireland offering 11 room categories to suit most budgets, 3 Meal Plans – Full Board, Basic A/I, Select A/I, 9 a la carte restaurants included on Select A/I package and is one of the livelist resorts in the Maldives with nightly entertainment and 7 bars to choose from. Brian reminded agents that no other island in Maldives offers such choice in room types or restaurants.
Agents can check out all resorts in the Maldives represented by Simply Maldives on their website- www.SimplyMaldives.ie
Brian finished up by reminding agents of the fantastic trade rates available, starting from $284USD per room, per night (based on 2 pax) for Full Board, $424USD per room, per night (based on 2 pax) for Basic All Inclusive or $516USD per room, per night (based on 2 pax) for Select All Inclusive. These rates are valid until 30 Sep 2024.
Island Marketing also have a great incentive, in partnership with Emirates, in market at the moment. All you have to do is make a booking to Kuramathi Island with Emirates flights and you will earn a €100 One4All voucher per booking. The incentive runs until 15 June (or until the 20 x vouchers are claimed) and bookings can be made via their Tour Operator partners – Travel Focus, Sunway Holidays and Discover Travel. To claim your voucher simply send your booking details including a copy of the flight PNR by email to [email protected]
